Beer Review: Sol

I feel like seeing what beers the Latin world has to offer. So, over the next few days, if it’s not from a hot, emotional, Catholic country, I’m not interested. So where better to start than with Sol. This Mexican offering has been advertised heavily on posters recently. Let’s see what it’s all about.

I like the look of this bottle. It’s tall and slim, just like me. And the clear glass shows off the bright yellow liquid within. My knowledge of the Spanish language might be rusty, but I know enough Latin to guess that “Sol” means “sun”. And this bottle looks sunny.

Without a neck label to speak of, we head straight for the main front label.

With a transparent background filled, mostly, with white and red, Sol stays looking original and sunny. Not least because everything on there revolves around a big, stylised picture of the sun. It proudly displays the words “Imported Beer” at the top of the label. And there is some Spanish, which I think translates to “beer” and “since 1899”.

At the bottom of the label, there is what looks like medals. But they’re so small, I can’t make out what they say. Also toward the bottom of the label, amongst some Spanish small print is more pride in its Mexican origin. I could well be wrong here, but it looks like the company behind Sol is a brewer by the concise name of Cerveceria Cuauhtemoc Moctezuma. If you can shed some light on Sol’s origins and reputation in it’s homeland, do please leave a message at the end of this post.

Lastly, we find some important little small-print details hidden away in a corner of the label. That this is a 33 centilitre bottle. And that is has an alcoholic volume of 4.5%. This isn’t going to be terribly strong then.

Over on the back, and because this is imported, it has very little information. But repeated in half a dozen different languages.

Interestingly for an imported beer, they have given us the UK units of alcohol. Which, if you’re interested, is a paltry 1.5 units for this little bottle.

This bottle was imported to the UK by Coors Brewers Limited. They have a consumer helpline number. A website at www.sol-beer.co.uk. And, unsurprisingly for a beer, it contains malted barley. And that is everything worth mentioning on this bottle. Now time to see if Sol is a hot summer’s day or a bank holiday Monday of a beer.

Thanks to the transparent glass, the colour won’t surprise you. In the glass, it looks fizzy. And there is one of the most consistent and manageable heads I’ve seen in a very long time. No clusters of vanishing bubbles. This is a consistent layer of foam. Very nice.

And it smells like beer. After so manyawfullagers recently, it’s great to smell something vaguely beer-like again. It may be somewhat generic in its beer-ness, but it has that familiar, welcoming blend of malted barley and hops to greet your nostrils.

A shame then that the taste is a let down. It may not be a lager, but it doesn’t taste much better than one. The blend of ingredients leaves a horrible, and lingering bitterness and sourness in your mouth. At this point, I usually reel of a list of the flavours I can taste. But in Sol’s case, that’s impossible because I’m wincing from the horrible unpalatable, and lingering blend of bitterness and sourness.

In its favour, it’s not particularly gassy. It smells right. The blend of tastes and flavours are unlike any, from any other beer I’ve sampled. So you could call it full of character and distinctiveness. And it comes in a very nice bottle.

I wanted to like Sol. I truly wanted, and expected, to enjoy a fine quality, if largely generic beer. So it’s with considerable regret that I cannot recommend it. More than that. This is one of the worse beers and biggest disappointments I’ve tried. It makes Latin American economic policy look successful in comparison.

Rating: 1.3

Have you tried Sol? Did you find it as revolting as I did? Is there anyone who likes it?
Corrections, opinions, thoughts, ideas and suggestions here please. Check back soon for more.

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21 Responses to “Beer Review: Sol”

Good review! I recently sampled a bunch of Mexican beers myself, and Sol was one that I had not yet tried. I’m thinking maybe I won’t waste my time! As far as the Mexican beers, I liked the Pacifico and Negra Modelo the best.

I’ve been drinking beer for quite sometime now and usually in Mexico, beach or the river to name a few beer drinking spots. Pacifico is a great beer, XX is fine too. Corona is SHIT and Sol is a crowd pleaser among the hot spots. Women love Sol for all of you dumb asses out there. So drink what the ladies like and you fools might like it too.

I just got back from Cancun, where I tried Sol. I loved it, but I’m a light-weight beer drinker and a woman too. I will be buying some here if I can find it to see if it tastes as good at home as it did on vacation. If I change my mind I will fess up.

Sol seems to be the beer of choice at many of the resorts in
Mexico…sometimes the only one offered. I had my first one
many years ago and have had nothing else since. Its light, clean
and always a treat! Hard to find in the states but well worth the
effort.

JOHN you are right. I am American and lived in several of the resort areas of the Yucatan. Many/Most places offer Sol and nothing else. I don’t remember If I loved it from the start, but I do now. I moved to Texas and one of the considerations in moving was that Sol was easy to find…hahaha. True story.

I’m not a super taster (i.e. there are a lot of distinctions people make between beers and wines that I just can’t tell apart). So I’m not one to really listen to on the taste question. But I just spent 3 weeks on the east coast of the Yucatan (NOT in Cancun) and here’s what I do know:

At many places *that cater to Mexicans* rather than tourists, there is only one beer available. It’s often Sol, but it could be Pacifico or Dos Equis (XX). I think only tourists drink Corona. Honestly, all these beers taste pretty similar to me (especially the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 8th, etc).

What really affects the way my beer tastes is whether I add lime and what I’m eating. If there are lots of other gringos around, I like a lime. If I want to blend better with the locals, I DON’T take a lime. Most Mexican guys DO NOT put lime in their beer. This raises the question of who is the target market for “Sol con Limon y Sal.” It’s been available for more than a year, so someone must be buying it, but I bought a six-pack with a Canadian a German last year and with the distinctive saltiness, it was universally reviled. Maybe it’s consumed by construction crews before the siesta that’s mandatory when the temp hits 95 with 90% humidity.

Served cold, very cold nothing beats this beer on a hot summers day, no additives required (lime,salt) unlike some others. Is this beer distributed by Molson-Coors in the US, as Corona is supplied by Molson here in Canada

I like Sol quite a bit. (Just make sure it hasn’t been sitting on a lighted shelf somewhere for a long time.) It’s fine with or without the lime. It’s best, of course, on a hot sunny day. I drink dark beers in the colder months…Warsteiner Dunkel, Negra Modelo, Franziskaner Dunkelweizen, and various sundry porters and stouts. But on a hot sunny day, it’s hard to beat a Sol for pure refreshment.

I completely disagree. On a hot Summer day, relaxing on my deck, nothing beats a Sol. Light, but still has good flavor, and goes down very smooth. I’m not exactly a beer novice either. Now, stuck in your home in the middle of a blizzard, you will want something a bit hardier.

I have a large bottle at this very moment, its 940ml (impressive size for a tally) I tasted it when the beer was very cold, there is nothing nasty about this beer, its bright in colour and light in taste, the perfect beer to be drinking on a hot day when you are consuming a hot mexican chilli dish. mmmmmmmm, dont get wrong there are many better tasting beers from mexico, this one is a nice middle of the road dinner beer

I agree with all the reviews from the people that like Sol, and totally disagree with you. I spend many a vacation in Mexico and only want Sol, for my beer preference. Upon returning to Canada, I also buy it here, and drink it right through the winter. It always tastes the same to me…….GREAT!!!

After Budweiser, Sol is the best tasting beer I’ve had so far. Some might think I am naive to even mention these two beers together; and rightly so. I am not a beer veteran. If anything, a novice at best. However, I know my beer when I taste it. The first time I had Sol, it was at an Airport Hub. Since then, Sol is all I’ve ever had. It is a mild brew which might not please the pallet of self proclaimed Macho’s who’d rather drink to show off than to actually enjoy a drink. To best enjoy this beer, use it to make your Michelada. The Macho’s, of course, can sniff gunpowder and call it a night.🙂

If you get Sol at a bar, it will be skunk. Too old. If purchased in Mexican Grocery store like Fiesta, best bet, but IN Mexico, where it is the freshest, this is the best! Hands down favorite Mexican Beer, but at bars((draft) and some grocery stores, I will go with XX if not sure of beer age!